Smart vehicles need to share the road

The connected vehicle has morphed into the hottest topic in the automotive industry.

Under the heading of “connectivity,” the discussion covers vehicle-to-vehicle communication, in-vehicle smartphone apps to E112 (eCall in all new cars are mandated in Europe from April 2018), remote diagnostics, and over-the-air software updates.

“Saving people’s lives” is the operative tagline among the marketing types in the auto industry promoting V2V, ADAS and highly automated driving technologies.

However, often left out of discussions about the connected vehicle ecosystem are people who ride bicycles and motorcycles.

I don’t think this neglect is intentional. It tends to reflect a general lack of awareness toward motorcyclists and bicyclists in the United States. So, where are we today? Will bikes and Harleys communicate at all with cars and trucks in an increasingly connected world?

According to an NHTSA report, roughly 5,000 motorcyclists die on the road every year in the United States. The latest data shows that fatalities among pedalcyclists jumped by 12.2 percent in 2015 compared to a year before, while motorcyclists’ fatalities also increased by 8.3 percent.

In the last decade, the proportion of motorcyclist fatalities increased from 11 percent in 2006 to 14 percent in 2015.